


waves

by voreizon



Category: ONF (Band)
Genre: Confessions, M/M, Nervousness, One Shot, References to the Ocean, Sleepy Boys, Too Many If I’m Being Honest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:21:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24281995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voreizon/pseuds/voreizon
Summary: like his laugh, hyojin is abrasive and rough around the edges, and yet he carries with him a keen sort of tenderness. a tenderness that washes over jaeyoung like the splash of a wave on a summery day. inviting, refreshing. drawing him into the pull of the sea.
Relationships: Kim Hyojin/Shim Jaeyoung | Wyatt
Comments: 6
Kudos: 47





	waves

jaeyoung does not pride himself on sentimentality.

but the fingers—small and slender and flushed a soft pink at the knuckles—that knock and intertwine with his twist the pit of his stomach in an unfamiliar knot. a strange heat bubbles, deep in his chest, at the sound of laughter—cutting and loud and obnoxious and undeniably him. like his laugh, he is abrasive and rough around the edges, and yet he carries with him a keen sort of tenderness. a tenderness that washes over jaeyoung like the splash of a wave on a summery day. inviting, refreshing. drawing him into the pull of the sea.

the laughter grows faint beside him, the tender wave retreating into the vast unknown that is hyojin, but the lovely ring echos in jaeyoung's ears out of habit. beneath thick, heavy lashes, hyojin's gaze settles on jaeyoung in the dark, tracing the silhouetted curve of his face, strong even through the hazy lens of the night. steady breaths, in and out and in and out, fill the absence between them. a comfortable silence. jaeyoung draws his thumb along the flesh of hyojin's palm in mindless circles, matching the rhythm of their breath with each stroke. his stiff dormitory bunk melts away from underneath him, and the spray of the ocean clings to his skin. paradise, alone with hyojin.

“you’re thinking about something.”

crash. a ripple of water, forceful. in his voice is a sense of finality — hyojin is not asking, but telling. matter-of-fact. jaeyoung reels back to reality, feels the intense, fond stare of hyojin boring into the side of his head. hyojin's face sours, just slightly, as he furrows his brow, noting the strain of concentration on jaeyoung's features.

“i am,” is the reply after a short pause, and jaeyoung hangs on the word for a beat as he finds his bearings. gruff and scratchy from underuse, his voice carries only as far as hyojin's ears, and he swallows around the gravelly dryness in the back of his throat. hyojin waits, half-expectant, for jaeyoung to continue. they have known each other for years, have grown to understand each other's subtleties and nuances. jaeyoung needs silence, and hyojin complies, chewing at the inside of his cheek as jaeyoung's thumb stills. “about you,” finally.

the mattress shifts underneath hyojin's weight as he turns on his side, the soft groan of the springs falling flat in the air around them. intrigue. his eyes trace the outline of jaeyoung's lips, searches his face for a glimpse into his mind, but he is lost in thought. “what about me?” the small, inquisitive lilt in his tone betrays the concern painted across his brow line.

a sharp exhale through his nostrils, and a smile toys at the corners of jaeyoung’s mouth. “nothing bad.” a promise, and jaeyoung moves his head, meeting hyojin’s gaze in the blackness of the room. the crack beneath the door gives way to the soft glow of the hallway light which casts a warmth across the stretch of hyojin’s cheeks. the glassy reflection of hyojin’s eyes reminds jaeyoung of the ocean’s surface; their depth fills him with the somber burden of longing. he is a sailor. adrift, lonely. his grip on hyojin’s hand tightens as he pulls it toward himself, resting it atop the dulled beating of his heart.

“tell me,” and hyojin is nearer now, the words spilling from his lips like a rush of water and ghosting over jaeyoung’s like a delicious taunt. abrasive and rough and tender. he presses his palm to the monotonous drum of jaeyoung’s heartbeat, curls his fingers into the fabric pooled around his chest. the weight of jaeyoung’s hand on top of his is an anchor, keeping him grounded. present. for a moment, jaeyoung stalls. there’s a pounding in his ears. though his eyes plead with jaeyoung for a response, hyojin says nothing.

silence weaves through their toes. hyojin counts each beat. jaeyoung’s smile never falters.

“i think you’re a pain,” jaeyoung answers without malice, his reply dripping with the sweet bitterness of the sea and hyojin has to stop himself from leaning in to taste. not a sailor, but a siren. “you drive me crazy.” the truth.

“i try,” hyojin hums, inching closer still, until the space between them is but a hair’s breadth. jaeyoung spares a glance at hyojin’s mouth, plush and pillowy, before averting his eyes. fighting the urge to close the gap, jaeyoung snakes an arm beneath hyojin, traces the small of his back. he hooks his arm around the swell of hyojin’s waist, and again, that unfamiliar twist tugs at jaeyoung’s insides; his stomach lurches in peculiarity at the warmth of their proximity. he is grateful for the darkness and the cover the shadows provide the heat rising to his face, dusting his cheeks a timid hue of red.

but hyojin smiles a knowing smile. even in the dim light, he is radiant and bright like the summer sun, and jaeyoung cannot help but relish the thought. hyojin ducks his head into the groove jaeyoung’s shoulder, careful of his nose, and lays his cheek flat against jaeyoung’s shoulder. strands of his hair fall, loose, into his line of sight and he blinks them away, focusing instead on the rise and fall of his hand in time with jaeyoung’s breath. jaeyoung is motionless as hyojin presses into his side, conforms to the shape of his body. the tips of hyojin’s ears burn as he wraps a tentative leg around jaeyoung’s and allows himself to rest––to sink into jaeyoung.

“i think,” jaeyoung starts again, and hyojin can feel the low rumble of his voice through the tips of his fingers, like wavelets breaking the calm surface of the water. “i think i like you—”

“you do.”

“—but we can’t do this.” the words are lost to uncertainty, die in the back of his throat amid the dryness, and jaeyoung drags his tongue across his bottom lip in a fruitless attempt to wet them both. the weight of his hand on hyojin’s slackens, but remains planted over his chest. hyojin turns his head upward, goaded by the uncharacteristic sound of defeat in jaeyoung’s tone.

“i like you,” hyojin says at once. the confession dances off his tongue as casual as the weather, and jaeyoung thinks that perhaps it is—hyojin wears his heart on his sleeve; he is loud and straightforward. he is a tide, a flow of energy and emotion moving toward a definite goal. hyojin’s gaze demands jaeyoung’s attention. there is no doubt in jaeyoung’s mind that hyojin is nothing less than genuine. “i like you,” he says again, more certain this time than before. absolute. he can sense jaeyoung’s worry, the way his muscles tense beneath him.

with little difficulty, hyojin slips his hand from jaeyoung’s grasp, resting his palm instead on the side of his face. he thumbs just above the apple of jaeyoung’s cheek. jaeyoung leans into the gesture, releasing a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding as his eyes flutter shut. the pleasant sting of goosebumps prickles his skin, following the trail of hyojin’s thumb.

"who says we can't?" all but a whisper. jaeyoung feels the heat of hyojin’s breath on his neck. he knows hyojin is wearing that brilliant smile—can hear it in his voice, no matter how faint. hyojin draws near, and the drum of jaeyoung’s heartbeat is deafening, pounding hard against his ribcage. the arm slung around hyojin’s waist urges him closer, closer, closer. “we’ll figure it out.” hyojin is hovering, just out of reach.

“can i kiss you?” and the wave of laughter bubbles up from hyojin’s chest, pushes jaeyoung over the edge; tender and warm and loud and hyojin. a sea of hyojin. the tide pulses in time with the beating of his heart. hyojin doesn’t answer, doesn’t have to. he cups jaeyoung’s face in his palm, closes the gap. 

first, their lips brush, their noses bump. hyojin’s thrown care out of the window. what matters is jaeyoung. their kiss is an awkward dance, the gentle bobbing of a buoy. jaeyoung’s fingertips dig into the dip of hyojin’s waist, tease the hem of his shirt, and hyojin’s giggling into jaeyoung. they do not hesitate, but explore each other with a newfound wonder—a kiss to the corner of hyojin’s mouth, to the groove of jaeyoung’s upper lip.

like the retreating tide, hyojin pulls away all too quickly. he comes to rest his forehead against jaeyoung’s and combs his fingers through the short hair of his neck, drags his nails against jaeyoung’s scalp with a feather-light touch. jaeyoung follows hyojin’s lips, presses one final kiss to his mouth, refreshing. the promise of another.

“okay,” jaeyoung breathes out a sigh full of life, realizes that maybe he’s not alone. maybe he’s never been alone. “we’ll figure it out.”

the small, slender fingers, flushed a soft pink at the knuckles, that wind through the hair of his neck and lull him to rest; the fits of laughter, kept to himself mostly yet fill the compact space of their room, that ring in his ears even in the comfortable silence; the man lying in his arms, fit snug into the crook of his body, dozing off into the night with the promise of tomorrow, and the next day, and the next, adrift at this crazy, new sea, together with jaeyoung—he does not pride himself on sentimentality, but the waves, rough and tender, that cradle them out into the unknown fills him with hope.

**Author's Note:**

> began writing this at 4am a few weeks ago and finally got around to finishing it...thought i'd dip my toe back into the creative-writing scene after a very long semester full of research papers, rhetorical essays, and public speeches. comments and critiques are appreciated. stream everybody. onf world domination.
> 
> feel free to follow me on twitter at @4yojin.


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